Senate to debate ball-tampering debacle

The Senate is set to debate Australian cricket's ball-tampering saga, as politicians weigh in on the scandal engulfing under-fire captain Steve Smith.

One Nation's Brian Burston proposed Monday's urgency motion, which is "the need to understand why some politicians and professional sportsmen feel the need to cheat".

Smith has been slapped with a one-Test ban by the International Cricket Council and could be sacked from the captaincy after admitting the team's leadership group agreed to illegally scuff the ball in the third Test against South Africa.